The Taiwan Relations Act gives the United States an important legal commitment to this vibrant democracy. The U.S. provides tangible security and stability to the Taiwan Straits which helps Taiwan interact with China on its own terms.
How did Taiwan rank in the Index of Economic Freedom? Click here to find out. Read More.
The United States is the provider of both tangi¬ble security and political stability to the Taiwan Strait. Read More.
America's strategic interests in Asia go hand in hand with democratic values. Not by accident, all of our formal security allies in Asia - Australia, Japan, South Korea, the Philippines and Thailand - are democracies. And events are trending further in this direction. Taiwan recently conducted its… Read more
On December 22, 2011, Taiwan was nominated by the U.S. Department of State for inclusion in the Visa Waiver Program. Since 1986, the Visa Waiver Program has facilitated travel and tourism in the United States for individuals from friendly member nations, and security measures added since the program’s inception have… Read more
Abstract: The failure of the Congressional Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction (“Super Committee”) to come to agreement on reducing the federal deficit raises the real prospect of a total of $1 trillion in … Read more
Senator Joe Lieberman (I-CT) visited Heritage to give the annual B.C. Lee lecture, focusing on the importance of American leadership in the Asia-Pacific region. After his speech, he sat down with us for a wide-ranging interview on free trade, Taiwan, the pitfalls of the Afghanistan withdrawal, and the implications of… Read more
Abstract: Under the clear terms of the Taiwan Relations Act, the U.S. is obligated to make available the hardware and services necessary for Taiwan's defense. This obligation is a critical component of U.S. policy in the Western Pacific, as it ensures that, in the… Read more
As I write this column, my plane is taking off from Taiwan's Taoyuan International Airport to bring me back home. It was a special visit to Taiwan - one that helped put many earlier visits into a larger perspective. My first visit to Taiwan occurred 40 years ago. The changes… Read more
Former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld held a book event in Chicago recently. In answering a question about China, he assessed, "War in the Taiwan Straits could only happen as the result of a monumental diplomatic blunder.” He is probably right. The problem is, Obama’s Taiwan policy increases the probability of… Read more
U.S.–China military-to-military relations have a very rocky history over the past two decades. Mutual suspicion, as well as fluctuations in the broader U.S.–China relationship, has resulted in periods of relatively good relations alternating with nearly frozen military contacts. This week’s visit by General Chen Bingde of… Read more
The U.S.–Taiwan relationship today is all but frozen, increasing the level of anxiety in Taiwan as it tries to cope with a rising China. One hears this anxiety in conversations with officials in Taipei and in the flurry of public exhortations recently offered by President Ma Ying-jeou concerning Taiwan’s defense… Read more
The global financial crisis has had a major impact on perceptions of American power and its relationships in Asia. Many of the perceptions are not founded on facts. Among the facts often overlooked: American companies invest far more abroad than does… Read more
Abstract: Since the end of the Cold War, China has dramatically expanded its navy, especially its submarine fleet, adding dozens of attack submarines since 1995. During the same period, the U.S. attack submarine fleet has shrunk to 53, and it is projected to fall to 41 in 2028. The U.S.… Read more
The year 2008 marked the 30th anniversary of the beginning of market reforms in China -- and perhaps the third anniversary of their ending. Since the present Chinese leadership took power, market-oriented liberalization has been minor. And as such policies have wound down, they have been supplanted by renewed state intervention: price controls, the… Read more
With the delivery of the full report from the U.S. Human Space Flight Review Committee (commonly referred to as the Augustine Report), the potential for a substantial, multi-year gap in U.S. manned spaceflight capability has drawn increased attention. In light of this problem, the idea has been raised in some… Read more
How does one say "double-dealing" in Chinese?* Last weekend, Chinese assistant foreign minister Cui Tiankai visited Teheran for the ostensible purpose of expressing concern over Iran's announcement that it is enriching uranium. But Minister Cui's mission was more likely designed to bolster China's security relationship with Iran. … Read more
This year marks the 60th anniversary of beginning of the Korean War—a war that, recent events remind us, has yet to be resolved. One of the side effects of the North Korean invasion in 1950 was the creation of the Taiwan Straits issue in American policy… Read more
The long-awaited Department of Defense (DOD) annual report on Chinese military capabilities, required under the fiscal year (FY) 2000 National Defense Authorization Act, was finally released last week. Although an August publication means it is several months late, the report makes up for its tardiness by providing China analysts with… Read more
In the midst of the Obama Administration’s effort to corral Chinese support for international action against Iran and North Korea, it has been widely recounted—including by no less than the Secretary of Defense himself—that the People’s Republic of China (PRC) rebuffed his interest in visiting the PRC for consultations. … Read more
Abstract: The United States is the provider of both tangible security and political stability to the Taiwan Strait. Given China's ongoing military buildup, particularly toward Taiwan, it is essential that the United States provide Taiwan with the physical and political means to resist the capacity of the Chinese military to… Read more
[caption id="attachment_88422" align="alignnone" width="550" caption="Election officials count the presidential...… Read more
Former Governor Jon Huntsman (R–UT) was at The Heritage Foundation this week answering policy questions. In his talk, he...… Read more
During his confirmation hearing in the Senate Armed Services Committee, Mark Lippert, nominee for Assistant Secretary of...… Read more
Senator Joe Lieberman (I-CT) visited Heritage this week to give the annual B.C. Lee lecture, focusing on the...… Read more
Yesterday, House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairwoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R–FL) held the second hearing in the two-part...… Read more
Catching you up on clips, commentary and news of the day. Sign up for the daily email update from Scribe FACT ...… Read more
At the end of a series of closed-door briefings and meetings with the congressional committees of jurisdiction—after...… Read more
In an article entitled “China and US on Edge over Vote in Taiwan,” today’s Financial Times (FT) quotes a “senior US...… Read more
Reports are now emerging that the Administration has decided to reject the sale of F–16 C/Ds to Taiwan, in advance of...… Read more
It's official: There are now 100 countries that offer Taiwanese citizens visa-free travel. Malaysia has the honor of...… Read more
Research Fellow, Asian Studies Center
Research Fellow